Keys to Music podcast: Beethoven’s String Quartets

The Keys to Music podcast continues its survey of Beethoven’s music by exploring the String Quartets.

Beethoven’s seventeen string quartets span the traditional “three periods” of his life. The six Op 18 quartets come from the early period, the three “Razumovsky” quartets and the “Harp” and “Serioso” quartets come from middle period, and the five late quartets and the Grosse Fuge are among his very last works.

As a whole, these works form one of the great chapters in the history of music and the chamber music repertoire would be unthinkable without them. In this program, part of our ongoing survey of Beethoven’s major works, we’ll cast our eye over all of them to get an overview of this part of Beethoven’s incredible legacy.

The recordings used will feature Australia’s own Goldner String Quartet, who have recorded the complete Beethoven quartets on ABC Classics.